CERES Project
project Aljezur, Algarve, Southwest Portugal

project

CERES International Project

The CERES International Project is an energetic hub for
experiential learning and multidisciplinary research. The Project is set over two beautiful sites in
the middle of the Parque Natural Vincentina and is close to the Atlantic ocean. We set aside the
vast majority of our land to create a privately owned and managed terrestrial
reserve. Initially, we are renting a villa to
accommodate visiting researchers and students as temporary measure until the CERES eco-lodge and classroom have been finished to our standards.

From the very outset minimising
the environmental impact of our new field station was of paramount importance.
The Rebela eco-lodge will open early in 2016. The new classroom and the field
laboratory will be finished by the end of 2016. Phase two is the construction
of an eco-village which will enable us to accommodate larger student groups.

" an energetic hub for experiential learning and multidisciplinary research "

The eco-lodge will be situated on a stunningly beautiful plot of
land in the heart of the Amoreira River valley. The spot is beautifully
secluded. Yet, with a combination of alternative energy sources, the lodge will provide hot showers, Wi-Fi,
and even a nature pool built from a recycled reservoir. The new building will
be constructed on the footprints of an old abandoned farmhouse resembling it in style
and size. The decks surrounding the lodge will provide a view of the wildlife
within the setting of the river valley and cork forest.

Google Earth satellite image showing the land boundaries of Rebela and the Aljezur river. The Amoreira estuary is about 2km downstream. Go to Google Maps and search for CERES Aljezur.

The building is designed and planned carefully - showing that
functional and good design can go hand in hand with sustainability. The
building will be predominantly self-sufficient in terms of energy and water supply
and will exceed the latest insulation standards.
We will install a photovoltaic system that is big enough not only to
supply all our own electricity but also feed a surplus of green energy into the
grid and recharge an electric car. All
water heating for showers and our innovative wall heating system will be solar. Air conditioning in the
summer will be achieved with natural cooling utilising a cross-ventilation
scheme. Water will be pumped with solar powered pumps from a borehole on site, cleaned in a Bio-Cycle waste water treatment system after use and released through a reed
bed 20m from where it was extracted. The only non-renewable resource that will be used is a
minimal amount of gas for cooking.

Floorplan of the Rebela eco-lodge

For the construction, we will use local materials and labour
whenever possible. A thick lime render will control indoor humidity and
contribute to a healthy living environment.
Portuguese cork will provide insulation.
Local pine and eucalyptus wood will be used to for the pergola
(gin-and-tonic promenade it has been called!) and our bespoke handcrafted
furniture.

Each of the five bedrooms will have a large
French door leading to a wooden deck where guests can awaken to the sound of waves and the sight of storks and
herons. A large communal open plan kitchen and living area will be linked with
French doors to the outside. A log
fire will provide warmth during the rare cold winter evenings and there will be an outside pizza oven that our guests can enjoy. We will provide a secure under cover
storage area for your field equipment,
bikes and surfboards.

We are trying our best to minimise our impact on the
environment and are aware that there is always room for
improvement. We are always open to discuss new ideas and are grateful for suggestions.

The 112m2 Resource Centre enjoys stunning views
over the terrestrial reserve and the
Monchique mountain range. It will contain a laboratory, office, a lecture-classroom and conference room. The Resource Centre will
also have a small but dedicated library, a weather station with data logger as well as a herbarium / zoology collection of local specimens. The laboratory
(with 30 individual workstations) will be equipped for studies in terrestrial and
aquatic ecology. Wireless internet access
will be available throughout the buildings. The office will have ten
networked computer stations, scanners, colour and laser printers. The classroom (with smart board, projector and
sound system) will have capacity for 50 people.

CERES International is working closely with local, regional and
international partners to set aside over 50 hectares of our land as terrestrial reserves. Effective
research requires dedicated sites to provide long-term data for evaluating
environmental changes and management actions as well as developing the indicators and
basic knowledge necessary to understand and manage ecosystems. Our reserves
facilitate multidisciplinary research projects, the development of long term
monitoring programs and provide opportunities to evaluate innovative land
managing techniques. We intend to set up educational trails to engage the
public in scientific field research and raise awareness for conservation issues.

vale de maiaComprising of over 50 hectares, the Vale de Maia site contains pronounced hilly areas of schist with acid soils dominated by garigue and macchia vegetation. The secluded valleys
have a rich ecological diversity and are intersected by temporary streams that dry
out during the summer. Principal
vegetation consists of cork oak (Quercus suber), strawberry tree (Arbutus
unedo), rock rose (Cistus ladanifer), Spanish lavender (Lavandula stoechas),
and thymus species. The more accessible areas have previously been terraced and
used for eucalyptus silviculture.

Lavender (Lavandula stoechas)

View of Aljezur in the mist

Treehouse at Vale de Maia

rebela

The smaller Rebela site (2 hectares) is situated in the
flood plain of the Aljezur River (Ribeira de Aljezur) that leads into the Amoreira estuary. Freshwater wetlands that are interspersed with
temporary ponds abound the site to the west. The floodplain is used for
traditional cattle ranching and harbours an extremely rich biodiversity. The
site is above the salt wedge limit of the Aljezur river but still under
semi-diurnal tidal influence. A mature
cork oak (Quercus suber) forest and macchia vegetation cover the west
sloping hills of the reserve.

The CERES mission is to support interdisciplinary research
projects. Researchers and course leaders are encouraged to use our equipment and
accommodation. Applications should
include a brief research proposal or syllabus in their reservation request and
describe general objectives, methods, duration, dates, space needs and other
special requirements. Both of our
reserves are part of the Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina and Nature 2000 sites. Most scientific activities will require a research
permit from the Instituto da Conservação da Natureza e das Florestas (ICNF). We will be glad to provide help with the permit application process and to establish contacts to local researchers.

We aim to respects and protect
the wellbeing of people and the environment - including our staff, researchers,
students and the places we work. We are aware that working with us usually
involves international travel. We use carbon offsets to compensate for the
emissions we produce with an equivalent carbon saving (please see our travel policy). For offsite activities we try to use businesses that support the local community in terms of produce and services.
Our guests also contribute to the local community by visiting shops, restaurants, and cafes. We
provide conservation workshops for local schools and kindergartens at subsidised prices.

Conservation (marine and terrestrial), Education
(experiential, field based), Recreation (all sorts of watersports, climbing,
cycling), Environmental Sustainability (walking the talk) and
Internationalisation is what we, Axel and Astrid, are passionate about. As students, we both found excuses to carry
out our Master´s projects on the shores of South Africa and subsequently our PhD
studies in Cornwall. While having two
children in-between, surf, kitesurf and field work trips, we started
teaching.

From our own experience, we
strongly believe in the benefits of experiential, field based learning and the
multinational, multicultural and multilingual experience of trips abroad. Our initial international field trips were well received. The quality of work produced was
exceptional and the students loved them! This gave us the enthusiasm to organise more trips. We also discovered the inherent issues of taking students abroad: funding limitations, time
constraints, and increased liability concerns. We became hooked with the challenge of making educational excursions abroad easier,
safer and more pleasurable for all involved.

We received a CETL (Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning)
fellowship to research `the perfect field station´ to partner with. The results of the research project showed that the `ideal´ field station does not yet
exist. We like to see problems as
opportunities. The seed was planted. Equipped with the knowledge from countless
questionnaires, interviews, site visits and focus groups of what students and
trip leaders expect from a field trip, the plan grew to build a new field
study centre in Europe.

We were drawn to
Aljezur. The warm winters, the
accessibility, the location in one of Portugal’s most beautiful Natural Parks,
the constant surf, the rich diversity and the friendly people made Aljezur the
ideal location to set up the project. We have been coming to this area for more than 20 years and after considering most of the
alternatives we were certain that Aljezur would be the right place. We found an exciting plot of land in an ideal
location, quit our jobs and took our children and cats on the ferry....this is how it all began!

astrid

Dr Astrid Juliette Blum (PhD, MSc, BSc) graduated in Geology
from University of Kiel, Germany. The
first part of her Master´s project was carried out in France (sediment transport
of the Seine estuary); the second, a geological mapping project of a barrier
island system, in Cape Town, South Africa (both “with distinction”). She then joined the Quaternary Environments
Research Group at Plymouth University to take a PhD in sedimentology on a
fluvial system in SE Spain.

Astrid
has been employed as a lecturer in Ecology and Coastal Conservation at the Combined
Universities in Cornwall. She is an
enthusiastic teacher, fluent in four languages, with a strong background in
fluvial and coastal geomorphology, Quaternary geology and sedimentology. Over the course of her career, Astrid has
joined and organised several student field trips.

Dr Axel Bamberger (PhD, MSc, BSc, BEd) trained as a Biologist
and Sports/Science secondary school teacher at the University of Kiel,
Germany. He studied for his Marine Biology Masters project in South Africa and graduated with distinction in
1998. In the same year, he set up his
PhD project on salmon conservation in Cornwall funded by a scholarship from the
German Academic Exchange Service.

Axel
received his PhD with distinction in 2008 after working for five years as
a lecturer and later Programme Manager at the Centre for Applied Zoology in
Newquay. In 2008 he was promoted
Curriculum Area Manager to head the Marine Science and Ecology
Departments. Axel maintained a keen interest
in a broad range of subject areas. He
has supervised numerous research studies across several subject areas and has
experience in consultancy and project management.